Eritrea-Report-Final

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3. National service Eritrea’s national service (Hagerawi Agelglot) differs from the defence forces of other countries in that its overall aim is not only to defend the country, but also to rebuild it following the war of independence and to propagate the national ideology. National service is regarded as the ‘school of the nation’ in Eritrea (219). According to the National Service Proclamation of 1995 (220) its aims are: • To establish a strong defence force … [to] ensure a free and sovereign Eritrea. • To preserve and entrust future generations with the courage, resoluteness and heroic episodes shown by our people in the past thirty years. • To create a new generation characterised by love of work, discipline and a willingness to participate and serve in the reconstruction of the nation. • To develop […] the economy of the nation by investing in the development of our people as a potential wealth. • To foster national unity among our people by eliminating sub-national feelings. Information on the national service by the Eritrean authorities is extremely scarce (221). Therefore, this chapter is based mainly on information from academic research and human rights monitors. For a detailed source assessment, see the Chapter ‘Introduction and source assessment’. 3.1 Structure National service is divided into two parts: active national service (military service) and civilian national service which officially involves development projects. In reality, however, civilian service conscripts work in administrative structures, schools, hospitals, agriculture and construction companies. (cf. Chapter 3.6) (222). No official data is available regarding the number of people engaged in national service but various estimates place the figure at between 200,000 and 600,000 in recent years, approximately half of whom are assigned to active military service (223). Deserters have reported that many army units are seriously undermanned and that the whole force numbers only 100,000 (224). The Eritrean military officially reports to the Minister of Defense. This post is temporarily vacant, since the former Minister of Defense, Major General Sebhat Efrem, was moved to the Ministry of Energy and Mines. In March 2014, Major General Filipos Woldeyohannes was appointed chief of staff of the Eritrean Defense Forces and is rumoured to become Minister of Defense (225). However, instructions are often transmitted directly from President Isaias Afewerki to the commanding officers (226). The military (Eritrean Defense Forces, EDF) consists of the army, the navy and the air force (227), with the army being the best resourced of the three (228). The Asmara-based air force had only seven operational planes in 2012 (229). (219) Tesfagiorgis, M., Eritrea, 2010, pp. 318, 371; Kibreab, G., The Open-Ended Eritrean National Service: The Driver of Forced Migration, 15-16 October 2014, p. 3; Kibreab, G., ‘The national service/Warsai-Yikealo Development Campaign in post-independence Eritrea’, 7 November 2013, pp. 633-635; Landinfo, Temanotat Eritrea: Nasjonaltjeneste, 23 March 2015; p. 7; UN Human Rights Council, Report of the Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in Eritrea, Sheila B. Keetharuth, 13 May 2014, p. 7; Kibreab, G., ‘Forced Labour in Eritrea’, March 2009, pp. 44-46. (220) Eritrea, Proclamation on National Service No 82/1995, 23 October 1995, Art. 5. (221) Landinfo, Temanotat Eritrea: Nasjonaltjeneste, 23 March 2015, p. 5. (222) Bozzini, D., National Service and State Structures in Eritrea, 28 June 2012, p. 4; Landinfo, Temanotat Eritrea: Nasjonaltjeneste, 23 March 2015, p. 8; Kibreab, G., The Open-Ended Eritrean National Service: The Driver of Forced Migration, 15-16 October 2014, pp. 4, 8. (223) Healy, S., Eritrea’s economic survival, 20 April 2007, source: Landinfo, Temanotat Eritrea: Nasjonaltjeneste, 23 March 2015, p. 8; Europa Regional Surveys of the World, Africa South of the Sahara 2015, 44th edition, 2014, p. 460; Kibreab, G., The Open-Ended Eritrean National Service: The Driver of Forced Migration, 15-16 October 2014, p. 10; Riggan, J., ‘Debating National Duty in Eritrean Classrooms’, Winter 2013, p. 91; Tronvoll, K., and Mekonnen, D.R., The African Garrison State. Human Rights & Political Development in Eritrea, 2014, pp. 166-169. (224) Awate, Crisis In The Eritrean Army, 3 April 2014; Africa Confidential, Issayas staggers a little, 15 February 2013. (225) Awate, Eritrea 2014: Isaias Afwerki & His Musical Chair, 19 July 2014; TesfaNews, Eritrea Appoints New Chief of Staff, 19 March 2014; Caperi, Eritrean FM Meets Outgoing Qatari Ambassador, 22 August 2014. (226) International Crisis Group, Eritrea: The Siege State, 21 September 2010, p. 10. (227) NationMaster, Eritrea Military Stats, n.d. (228) Warner, J., ‘Eritrea’s military unprofessionalism and US security assistance in the Horn of Africa‘, 27 February 2014, p. 700. (229) UN Security Council, Letter dated 11 July 2012 from the Chair of the Security Council Committee Pursuant to Resolutions 751 (1992) and 1907 (2009) Concerning Somalia and Eritrea Addressed to the President of the Security Council (S/2012/545), 13 July 2012, pp. 16-18.
EASO Country of Origin Information Report — Eritrea. Country Focus — 33 The Eritrean army is organised into the following units: Kifleserawit (division): Brigade: Battalion: Haili: Ganta (platoon): Mesre (troop): 5,000 soldiers (more during wartime), led by brigadier generals 900 to 1,000 soldiers, led by colonels 300 to 400 soldiers, led by lieutenants or majors 100 soldiers, led by lieutenants 30 soldiers 10 to 12 soldiers Gujile (unit): 5 to 6 soldiers (230) Eritrea is divided into five Military Operational Zones (Zone 1: Gash-Setit, Zone 2: South, Zone 3: West, Zone 4: East, Zone 5: Centre). The commanders of these zones have significant influence with the regional administration and are among the most powerful people in Eritrea (231). President Isaias, however, from time to time reassigns them to different zones or roles (232). The weakening of the Eritrean army due to numerous desertions has led to the establishment of an armed civil militiastyle structure known as the People’s Army (cf. Chapter 3.9) (233). According to unconfirmed reports, the Eritrean government also supports the armed Ethiopian rebel organisation Tigray People’s Democratic Movement (TPDM, Tigrinya: Demhit), which is based in Eritrea and is deployed there for certain security tasks (234). 3.2 Exemptions Proclamation 11/1991, which laid down the first legal basis for national service, originally provided for numerous exemptions (235). It was replaced in 1995 by Proclamation 82, which states that all Eritreans between the ages of 18 and 40 are conscriptable and shall belong to the reserve army until they reach the age of 50. Only those who fought in the war of independence are exempt from national service (236). Those who are unfit for military service are granted an exemption from the military programme but must complete 18 months of civilian service instead (237). Disabled, visually impaired and mentally ill persons may also be granted exemptions from civilian service (238). All of these exemptions (with the exception of that applying to former freedom fighters) apply only on a temporary basis and can be withdrawn at any time (239). In the past, religious leaders of the four official religious communities (cf. Chapter 5) were partially exempt from military service (240) but this stopped being the case in 2010 at the latest (241). (230) Landinfo, Eritrea: Nationaldienst, 28 July 2011, p. 9. (231) International Crisis Group, Eritrea: Scenarios for Future Transition, 28 March 2013, p. 15; Bertelsmann Stiftung, BTI 2014. Eritrea Country Report, 2014, p. 9; Africa Confidential, Issayas staggers a little, 15 February 2013; Tronvoll, K., and Mekonnen, D.R., The African Garrison State. Human Rights & Political Development in Eritrea, 2014, p. 73. (232) Africa Confidential, Issayas staggers a little, 15 February 2013. (233) Landinfo, Temanotat Eritrea: Nasjonaltjeneste, 23 March 2015, p. 21. (234) Awate, A Mercenary Army: Isaias Afwerki’s Last Stand, 30 October 2013; Plaut, M., Breaking: Eritrea — ‘Thousands’ detained in Asmara, 28 October 2013; International Crisis Group, Eritrea: Ending the Exodus? 8 August 2014, p. 9. (235) Eritrea, National Service Proclamation No 11/1991, 1991, Art. 5, 7, 9, source: Tesfagiorgis, M., Eritrea, 2010, p. 371 and Kibreab, G., The Open-Ended Eritrean National Service: The Driver of Forced Migration, 15-16 October 2014, p. 2. (236) Eritrea, Proclamation on National Service No 82/1995, 23 October 1995, Arts. 6, 12, 23. (237) Eritrea, Proclamation on National Service No 82/1995, 23 October 1995, Art. 13. (238) Eritrea, Proclamation on National Service No 82/1995, 23 October 1995, Art. 15. (239) Kibreab, G., The Open-Ended Eritrean National Service: The Driver of Forced Migration, 15-16 October 2014, p. 5. (240) Home Office (United Kingdom), Country Information and Guidance Eritrea: National (incl. Military) Service, 11 March 2015, p. 35. (241) USCIRF, USCIRF Annual Report 2014, — Countries of Particular Concern: Eritrea, 30 April 2014, p. 56; UN Human Rights Council, Report of the Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in Eritrea, Sheila B. Keetharuth, 13 May 2014, p. 7.
Page 4 and 5: Europe Direct is a service to help
Page 6 and 7: Contents Acknowledgments...........
Page 8 and 9: Disclaimer This report was written
Page 10 and 11: 8 — EASO Country of Origin Inform
Page 12 and 13: Methodology Defining the content Th
Page 14 and 15: 1. General country information 1.1
Page 16 and 17: 14 — EASO Country of Origin Infor
Page 28 and 29: 2. State structure and politics 2.1
Page 50 and 51: 5. Religion According to official i
Page 52 and 53: 6. Identity documents and exit Vari

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